Hydrogen Energy – Powering Climate Neutrality
Falling Walls Circle Tables are lending the spotlight to world-leading scientists, science strategists and policy-makers from academia, business and politics discuss how we can apply science, research and innovation to get the world moving again.
It is becoming increasingly clear that the world’s energy system must change dramatically to combat climate change. In this Falling Walls Circle Table, the panelists discuss the role that hydrogen energy could play in this energy transition, and the hurdles that this fuel faces.
Hydrogen carries great amounts of energy, and doesn’t produce greenhouse gases or other pollutants when it is burned. What’s more, it can be produced using ‘green’ techniques, either from renewable energy, or fossil fuels. This could allow for energy storage, and for renewable energy to be transported from where it’s produced to where it’s needed. This has wide ranging applications, including industry and transport. For aviation, “this is probably the biggest transformation that our industry has ever seen,” says Glenn Llewellyn.
However, hydrogen energy faces many challenges. These include technical hurdles in every stage: production; storage; transport; and efficient use. But there remain substantial social challenges, too, from the need for policies that can support hydrogen energy’s growth, to public understanding and acceptance of a still relatively unknown technology. But the panel agrees that if these challenges can be overcome, hydrogen could play a central part of our energy future.